October 23rd, 2014 
James Shotwell 
Of all the holidays celebrated worldwide, no single day is more loved by the UTG staff than Halloween. With the arrival of the year’s best month, the time has finally come to begin rolling out a plethora of features and special announcements we have prepared in celebration of our favorite day, including the one you’re about to read.
Now in its third year, 31 Days Of Halloween is a recurring feature that will run throughout the month of October. The hope and goal of this column is to supply every UTG reader with a daily horror (or Halloween-themed) movie recommendation that is guaranteed to amplify your All Hallows’ Eve festivities. We’ll be watching every film the day it’s featured, and we hope you’ll follow along at home.
[Warning: the material within is likely NSFW]
Day 23: Feast (2005)
I never intended to only highlight films that are as much comedies as they are horror stories, but as I’ve written more this year than what I have left to write it is clear a pattern has emerged. 2014 has been a year filled with realizations for me, and I suppose the most recent one is that I love thrillers and chillers that are so over the top they transcend the horror genre and become something far more memorable. Very few films pull this off, but many try every single year, and today I’ve decided to highlight a title that was so incredible and outright insane it somehow spawned two direct to video sequels: Feast.
The number of monster movies being made annually is currently on the rise thanks to a renewed interest in the mythology of Bigfoot, but in 2005 finding a film that featured people in giant rubber suits tearing everyday citizens to shreds was next to impossible. The only reason Feast came to life is because the team of people behind it won season three of the long defunct reality series Project Greenlight. Writers Marcus Dustan and Patrick Melton, along with director John Gulager, won the opportunity to make their little slice of insanity after appearing on the show, and in addition to making their movie, the crew also picked up executive producers Ben Affleck, Matt Damon, and Wes Craven. It had potential hit written all over it from day one, but the theater going public did not get hip to its terrifying offerings until the film was already headed to video. Buzz continued however, and in the years that followed two direct-to-DVD sequels, each more ridiculous than the last, found their way to the public. Sloppy Seconds is my favorite of the pair, but The Happy Finish is not all that bad.
Set in an aging bar on the side of rarely traveled desert road, Feast begins with a night like any other. A collection of depressed and depraved individuals are swapping stories and drinking their cares away, when all of a sudden a man covered in blood bursts through the door and proclaims, “Unless you want to die, you’re going to do what I say and you’re going to do it fast.” The patrons are startled, but ultimately they’re far too concerned with their own problems to pay much mind to the strange individual talking about creatures in the dark. That is, until the monsters he tried to warn them about appear.
When the blood begins to fly, Feast takes off like a rocket fueled by fun-filled terror that never stalls out. There is not one moment in the film’s 92-minute runtime that feels wasted, including the ten minutes of exposition needed to get our story in motion. Marcus Dustan and Patrick Melton crafted a script that abandons the convention of most horror films and goes straight for the jugular, delivering laughs and screams in heavy doses with rarely a moment of peace to be found. It’s filthy, bloody, and chock full of imagery that will stay with you for many years to come.
What sets Feast apart from the vast majority of monster films is the fact Gulager is not afraid to show you the unique creatures that inhabit the universe in which the film takes place. It takes a while for the beasts to be revealed in full, but from the moment they first appear you’re teased with brief reveals of design. It’s clearly someone in a suit, but it looks so damn cool you just roll with it. Don’t worry, I brought along a photo to help you get familiar:
Pretty freaking cool, am I right?
The only reason I picked up Feast in 2005 was because I knew Jason Mewes was part of the cast. What I discovered while watching it was a story and universe that has become an essential part of my home video collection, as well as a staple of many Halloween movie marathons. It’s the kind of film that you enjoy for different reasons with each viewing, be it a moment of creative filmmaking or some of the goriest monster deaths in recent memory outside of the Hatchet franchise, and it’s always better in groups.
This Halloween, make time for a classic or two, then take a chance with friends and Feast. You will never forget your first time, nor will you want to.
Editorial written by: James Shotwell
Last year’s Day 23 film: Nosferatu
- 2015’s Most Underrated Films - December 29, 2015
- Passing The Torch: The End Of An Era For UTG - December 1, 2015
- UTG PREMIERE: Before The Streetlights – “Private Browser” - November 26, 2015
Posted in 
Tags: 